August in Tokyo : wet, steaming hot, buzzing with insects, exhausting. Let's try to forget all this by hitting a matsuri : a Japanese local festival boasting bright colors, yukata, and - oh surprise - tons of food. There are firework matsuri, omikoshi matsuri, street dancing matsuri ; Asagaya Tanabata Matsuri is just a pleasantly noisy festival with lanterns and giant paper dolls.

Time to play who's-wearing-the-best-yukata-tonight

It's not a surprise : in August, one should admire the Japanese fireworks. This year, I was invited to watch the "fire flowers" from Edogawabashi park, in Eastern Tokyo. After the Atami fireworks on the sea, and, the Nagano fireworks in the mountains, let's contemplate the beauty of hanabi above the trees !

I'm your fire, your desire

There is nothing like Japanese gardens to make you worship the beauty of nature. "You know, it is a beautiful Japanese dream" said Vincent van Gogh to his brother, talking about his project of painting purple irises. At Nezu Museum, irises are blooming, and it is indeed a beautiful Japanese dream.

Study in Green

There is crazy love. Romantic love. Unconditionnal love. Tragic love. Epic love. Absolute love. Unforgettable love. Passionate love. Shining love. Heartbreaking love. Tainted love. One-way love. Deep love. Desperate love.

And there is volcanic love.

From Fujigoko, the five lakes region, there is nothing else to do but contempling the perfect cone of Fujisan. From dawn to twilight, the holly mountain is mesmerizing. Admiring its perfect figure is no tourism, it is a religion.

50 shades of Fuji

So the sakura are gone, weather is unstable, we are expecting the rainy season to start in a few weeks and a pityless summer heat to follow... But let's cheer up, because Tokyo at spring can be so beautiful. As a flower maniac, I go where it blossoms. Today, let's visit the sweet-smelling peony garden in Uneo park.

Japanese perfection

Light and shadow

Welcome to Nezu jinja, a peaceful shrine located in Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo - peaceful except when azaleas are blossoming !

Like Nezu, many shrines in Japan are dedicated to Inari, a deity of harvest and prosperity. In most of them, you will find stone foxes dressed in red, for the fox sometimes embodies Inari, or serves as his messenger. And also corridors of red torii. They say that walking under the torii, you enter the kingdom of spirits... Make sure that you don't get lost on the other side !

Follow the red road

... to a land of blossoming azaleas.

Inari's messenger - or maybe Inari himself

Beauty calling for beauty

It's not very difficult to capture the poetry of sakura when you shoot it in gardens and parks; but it doesn't express how magical the city can turn at the blossoming season. Sakura in the nature is glorious, but sakura in the city is more than that. It's enchanting, it's miraculous. Just like snow, it makes the city look, sound and smell different. It belongs to the city as its lights in the night.

Dream city.

Every year, before the sakura decadence, elegant plum tree flowers blossom at every street corner in various shades of pink. You even don't need to go to the park, for the plum trees are everywhere in private gardens and small local yards. Let me introduce my sweet neighbours in Takaido Higashi area.

Spring early birds

I needed to share with you : close to my place, there is the cutest shop ever. It seems to be from a Ghibli Studio movie. There you can fine pearls, buttons, ribbon, feathers : everything you need to create amazing hats and costumes. Second floor is an artcraft workshop to create tote bags and decoration items. 

Isn't this name quite Miyazaki-ish ?

Grande

Tokyo Tower bu night : a familiar view. But it's different to spot the Red Queen from the street, between two buildings, and to admire it from the elegant lounge bar of Prince Park Hotel Shibakoen. Especially with a glass of champagne in your hand. Time to test my new photography skills... Aperture mode !

A taste for champagne and endless fortune